News Results

* Merz highlights overcapacity issues with Chinese exporters. * Germany plans regular consultations with China by next year. * German firms concerned over China's trade surplus and market access. By Andreas Rinke.

Copper dipped on Thursday after touching a two-week high in the previous session as rising inventories and a firmer dollar tempered optimism about a revival in demand from China, the world's top consumer of the metal. Benchmark three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was down 0.1% to $13,304 per metric ton as of 1036 GMT.

The president and CEO of the World Economic Forum, Borge Brende, said on Thursday he was stepping down, a few weeks after the forum launched an independent investigation into his relationship with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Sterling has strengthened at the start of this week, resulting in EUR/GBP falling back towards the 0.8700 level, after hitting a high last week of 0.8752, noted MUFG.

Royal Bank of Canada (RY) reported fiscal Q1 adjusted earnings Thursday of 4.08 Canadian dollars per diluted share, up from CA$3.62 a year earlier. Analysts polled by FactSet expected CA$3.85. Revenue for the quarter ended Jan. 31 was CA$17.96 billion, compared with CA$16.74 billion a year earlier. Analysts surveyed by FactSet expected CA$17.52 billion. MT Newswires does not provide investment advice.

The European Central Bank sold some of its dollar assets early last year and reduced the weight of the dollar in its foreign exchange reserves in what it said was a standard rebalancing of its portfolio. The bank played down the significance of the move, which came before the market turbulence generated by U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff announcement last April.

* * ECB plays down significance of 'standard rebalancing' * Invested all proceeds into Japanese yen assets. The European Central Bank sold some of its dollar assets early last year and reduced the weight of the dollar in its foreign exchange reserves in what it said was a standard rebalancing of its portfolio.

Gaming and Leisure Properties (GLPI) said late Wednesday it priced an $800 million public offering of 5.625% senior unsecured notes due March 1, 2036, at 99.857% of par value. The company expects the offering to close March 4 and plans to use the net proceeds to repay borrowings outstanding under its operating partnership's term loan credit facility, among other things.

Targa Resources (TRGP) said Wednesday it priced an underwritten public offering of $750 million total principal amount of its 4.350% senior notes due 2031 and $750 million total principal amount of its 6.050% senior notes due 2056. The company intends to close the offering on Monday, the midstream services provider said, adding that it plans to use the net proceeds for general corporate purposes.

Ryman Hospitality Properties (RHP) said late Wednesday its RHP Hotel Properties and RHP Finance units priced a $700 million private placement of 5.75% senior unsecured notes due 2034, for about $687 million in expected net proceeds.

European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde hinted again at serving out her term to complete projects including the digital euro, in a fresh pushback on Thursday against speculation about an early exit.

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's choice of two like-minded monetary doves to the central bank's board sends a not-so-subtle message about her distaste for higher interest rates, casting doubt on how much further policy can be tightened.

* Yen recovers after comments from BOJ Governor. * Fed hold in March still seen as certain. * Nvidia's (NVDA) earnings parsed for AI demand hints. By Niket Nishant and Gregor Stuart Hunter. The yen bounced off lows on Thursday as investors assessed the latest signals from the Bank of Japan for clues on the rate outlook, while taking stock of Nvidia's (NVDA) earnings for insights into demand for AI.

Artificial intelligence is boosting productivity in the euro zone but it is not yet causing a wave of layoffs due to greater automation of labour, European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde said on Thursday. "What we are seeing for the moment is that it's increasing productivity," Lagarde told a committee of the European Parliament.

* US, Iran to hold talks in Geneva later in the day. * U.S. tariff rate for some countries will rise to 15%, says Greer. * US weekly jobless claims data due later in the day. By Noel John. Gold prices edged up on Thursday as uncertainty over U.S. tariff policy boosted the metal's safe-haven appeal, while investors awaited further details on U.S.-Iran talks later in the day.

Copper was steady on Thursday after touching a two-week high in the previous session as a lack of fresh catalysts and concerns over rising inventories kept the red metal range-bound. The most-traded copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange closed daytime trading, nudging 0.14% higher to 102,260 yuan a metric ton.

Japan's shorter-dated bond yields rose on Thursday, reversing the previous session's declines, as hawkish comments from the Bank of Japan officials stoked bets of early interest rate hikes.

AstraZeneca PLC (AZN): * AstraZeneca PLC (AZN) - ASTRAZENECA PRICES A $2BN BOND OFFERING. * AstraZeneca PLC (AZN) - ASTRAZENECA PRICES A $2BN BOND OFFERING. * ASTRAZENECA (AZN): EXPECTS TO USE NET PROCEEDS OF OFFERING FOR GENERAL CORPORATE PURPOSES, WHICH MAY INCLUDE REFINANCING OF EXISTING INDEBTEDNESS Source text: Further company coverage:

CFRA, an independent research provider, has provided MT Newswires with the following research alert. We increase our 12-month target price by CAD35 to CAD250, which is 17.9x our FY 27 EPS view, a premium to its five-year forward P/E of 10.7x given expected efficiency gains and improving revenue diversity. MT Newswires does not provide investment advice.

Abu Dhabi set an initial price guidance for its two-tranche U.S. dollar-denominated bonds sale, according to an arranging bank document. The indicative price for 5-year bond was set at 50 basis point over U.S. Treasuries, while 10-year debt carried an initial price of 55 bps over the same benchmark, the document, seen by Reuters on Thursday, showed.

* Trade policy uncertainty weighs on dollar as tech sector earnings boost optimism. * Yen recovers as BOJ Governor Ueda flags March and April for possible hike. * Fed hold in March still seen as a lock. By Gregor Stuart Hunter.

The University of California sold about $2 billion worth of general revenue bonds in the municipal market on Wednesday while U.S. President Donald Trump attempts a crackdown on the educational institution and other top schools. "The Regents continue to monitor the federal government's actions with respect to the higher education sector and, in particular, the university," a bond document said.

Copper eased on Thursday after touching a two-week high in the previous session, with a lack of fresh catalysts and concerns over rising inventories keeping the red metal range-bound. The most-traded copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange dipped 0.02% to 102,100 yuan a metric ton as of 0330 GMT.

* BOK keeps policy rate unchanged at 2.50% as expected. * BOK adopted Fed style dot plot charting rate path. * Dot plot signals rates on pause for next six months. * BOK raised South Korea's GDP forecast to 2.0% in 2026. By Cynthia Kim and Jihoon Lee.

Gold prices edged higher on Thursday, buoyed by a softer dollar and safe-haven demand fuelled by uncertainty surrounding U.S. tariff policy and U.S.-Iran talks.

Japanese government bond yields climbed across the curve on Thursday after comments in local media from Bank of Japan Governor ?Kazuo Ueda fanned expectations of an early ?interest rate hike.

The Japanese yen recovered on Thursday after the head of the Bank of Japan said the decision on whether to increase interest rates at its March and April meetings will be based on economic data, while overall movements in the market were subdued as traders awaited fresh catalysts.

South Korea's central bank has decided to expand its forward guidance on monetary policy by providing the views of ?its seven board members on ?a quarterly basis with 21 dots in the six-month term, mirroring ?the U.S. Federal Reserve's so-called "dot plot".

The International Monetary Fund on Wednesday called on the United States to reduce its growing fiscal deficit as the best ?way to bring down current account and trade ?deficits that it views as too large, sharing some concerns with the Trump administration.

Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (GLPI) today announced the pricing of a public offering of $800,000,000 aggregate principal amount of senior notes due 2036, to be issued by its operating partnership, GLP Capital, L.P., and GLP Financing II, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Operating Partnership.

Targa Resources Corp. (TRGP) announced today the pricing of an underwritten public offering of $750 million aggregate principal amount of its 4.350% Senior Notes due 2031 and $750 million aggregate principal amount of its 6.050% Senior Notes due 2056 at a price to the public of 99.812% and 99.975% of their face value, respectively.

?The ?International Monetary ?Fund said ?on Wednesday ?the ?U.S. ?current ?account deficit is ?too ?big, ?but the best way ?to ?reduce it ?is ?by ?shrinking ?the U.S. fiscal deficit.

Fitch Ratings has today announced that it has upgraded the ratings of SiriusPoint Ltd. (SPNT), including the Insurer Financial Strength rating of its operating subsidiaries to 'A' from 'A-', its Long-Term Issuer Default Rating to 'BBB+' from 'BBB', and its senior debt rating to 'BBB' from 'BBB-'. The Rating Outlook is Stable.

KBRA and Fitch Ratings downgraded Chicago's general obligation bonds to BBB-plus from A-minus on Wednesday, and both kept their rating outlooks at negative.

Freddie Mac today posted to its website its?Monthly Volume Summary for January 2026, which provides information on Freddie Mac?s mortgage-related portfolios, securities issuance, risk management, delinquencies, debt activities, and other investments. Freddie Mac?s mission is to make home possible for families across the nation.

KBRA downgrades the long-term rating on the City of Chicago, IL General Obligation Bonds to BBB+. Concurrently, KBRA assigns a long-term rating of BBB+ to the City of Chicago, IL General Obligation Bonds, Taxable Series 2026A and General Obligation Bonds, Series 2026B.